A Shelter From the Storm
by Window Girl
Summary: The last thing Two Face wanted was to get in the middle of Harley Quinn and Joker's relationship. But when she shows up at his hide-out one night, he finds out they have more in common than expected. Slight Harley\Harvey. Will have 3 chapters. Reviews politely requested.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the characters.

**A\N**: This fic was inspired in part by a Batman fic in the comics section of the site called "More Than Emotion" by DeathNymphetamine. In that story, Two Face and Harley Quinn have a heart-to-heart and wind up having comfort sex. I decided to try a G-rated version of that story in the animated verse. If you can handle the mature stuff, go r&r DeathNymphetamine's story at s/6694169/1/More_than_Emotion. The story also references events which happened in the Animated Series Comic, The Batman and Robin Adventures Issues 1 and 2 (by Paul Dini and Ty Templeton) which are summarized here wiki/Gilda_Dent#In_other_media

**A\N 2: **Also, **bold text=Harvey's thoughts**. _Italics=Two Face's thoughts._

The average Joes of Gotham would never imagine Two Face doing something as human as sleeping. And yet the feared villain was lying in a bed in an apartment he'd rented with his good eye drifting closed. The rain on the roof made him feel uncharacteristically peaceful. He was on the verge of sleep when he heard the knock on the door.

_What the heck?_

Peaceful mood gone, he grabbed his machine gun and charged towards the door.

He opened the door, ready to unleash his wrath against whoever was disturbing him, but he stopped dead.

It was Harley Quinn.

Her costume had several rips and tears in it. The tassels hung limply by her elbows, weighed down by the rain. Mascara and greasepaint blurred together on her face.

"Damn, Quinn! You look like something the cat threw up."

She smiled. "Nice to see you too, Twofers." There was the slightest hint of sarcasm in her voice.

He growled. "What the heck do you want? And how'd you know I was here, anyway?"

She pointed to the number above his door. "Who else would be living in apartment 2B at 22 Second Avenue?" Again, there was the sarcasm.

Two Face growled and started to slam the door.

"Wait a minute, Two Face."

Her tone caught his attention. She wasn't speaking in her usual high-pitched, nails-on-a-chalkboard voice, but in her deeper, saner voice. He paused.

"Look. Mr. J kicked me out again. Red's still in Arkham, and I sure as heck ain't going back there. Can I crash at your place, just for the night? Please?"

Who did she think he was? A relationship councilor for psychopaths? Two Face was ready to tell her to buzz off when he felt goody-goody Harvey stirring in the back of his fractured psyche.

**Look at her. The poor thing, she's shaking.**

_Oh no. _Two Face said to Harvey._ You're not letting that crazy clown bitch into MY lair_**.**

**She'll get sick if she sleeps out in the rain.**

_I don't freakin' care._

**Flip for it**.

Two-Face growled. He reached into his shirt pocket and grabbed the coin. He flipped it. Good heads.

_Fine, but she's sleeping on the couch._

Moments later, not only was Harley on the couch with a blanket, but she had used his shower and was dressed in one of Harvey's old Harvard t-shirts. Now that she had no make-up on, Two-Face could see the beginnings of a black eye.

"Went another round with the clown prince, huh?" he remarked.

Her silence was answer enough.

"Damn it, Quinn! Why do you keep going back to that lowlife? He's going to kill you someday. Do you want that to happen?"

"No." Harley was staring down at the floor like a child being scolded. After a while, she raised her eyes to Two Face.

"I don't know what to tell you, Harvey. I love my puddin'. Haven't you ever loved someone so much that you would do anything to be with them?"

She'd never addressed him by his given name before. Perhaps the shock of her suddenly intimate tone was what prompted Harvey to answer her question (over Two Face's objections).

"Grace. We loved Grace."

"Oh yeah. Wasn't she your fiancée before the whole. . .you know?"

"Yeah."

"What happened to her?"

"She got spooked when I tried to kill Bruce Wayne." He didn't really want to go into the whole ugly story, especially not with the girlfriend of the man who had engineered the _lie_ which had led to him almost killing his best friend and losing the love of his life forever. The look of anger and disgust in Grace's eyes as she jammed the Coin into his damaged face was still fresh and raw in his memory.

Fortunately, Harley simply said, "Wow" and didn't ask for any more information.

Harvey brought his fist down hard on a nearby table.

"Some people just aren't meant to have love, Quinn: me, you, the Joker. You're crazy if you think you can make it work with him."

"Yeah, that's what they tell me," Harley replied. This time there was bitterness in her voice, and she began to curl up in a fetal position on the couch.

Harvey sighed. "Look Quinn," he said in a gentler voice, "You can stay here for the night, but I need you out by morning. If you want, I'll help you find a domestic violence shelter. Or you can check back into Arkham. But don't go back to clown for a while. Wait till he cools off."

"Thanks for letting me stay," Harley replied in a friendlier tone, uncurling and stretching out on the couch. She was asleep within minutes.

Harvey watched her. Her blonde hair was down for once, surrounding her head with a curtain of gold. The black eye stood in sharp contrast to her pale skin. And she had the most peaceful expression.

**She looks like an angel. A beautiful bruised angel.**

_Shut up, Harvey. The last thing we need is for you to get all sentimental over the Joker's girl._

Read and review, please. Hopefully, the next chapter will be up soon.


	2. Chapter 2

_The sky was blood red, illuminated by occasional flashes of lightening. The rain on his back was hard, punishing. He was running, running, desperately trying to find shelter._

"_Harvey," a voice called out._

_He turned and saw Grace, standing under a calm, blue sky with her arms outstretched._

_Heart pounding, he ran towards those arms. "Grace!"_

_He was ready to grab her, to hold her and be held by her forever. But the lightening flashed, and Grace's welcoming expression turned to one of horror. _

"_Stay away from me!" she yelled, putting her hands in front of her eyes._

"_Grace, what-"_

"_Go away. You're a monster."_

_Suddenly, Grace transformed into a giant coin, and he could see his face reflected in the smooth, shiny surface. Both sides were distorted, marred beyond human recognition._

_The coin began to call his name in a high, ear-grating voice, "Two Face. Two Face."_

Someone was shaking him by the shoulder. "Two Face. Hey, Two Face!"

He Harley was standing beside his bed. A flash of lightening illuminated her, and he could see the concerned look on her face.

"You okay, Two-fers?"

He put his hand to the right side of his face (still smooth and unscarred) and found that a tear was there. He wiped it away.

"None of your freakin' business, Quinn!" he snarled, trying to sound like an intimidating villian and not like some crybaby who still dreamed about a woman he could never have. "What the heck are you doing in here anyway? Haven't you ever heard of a little thing called '_privacy?_'"

Harley bit her lip and looked down at the floor. "I was lonely and. . .and I wondered if I could come in with you."

Well, that was the most dumb-ass thing he'd ever heard. He was an organized crime boss with a face that was half-charred off and an infamous temper. His name was feared throughout the underworld. And Harley Quinn thought she could just climb into bed with him? Like he was some sort of teddy bear?

Harley was already lifting up the rumpled covers and swinging a leg over the bed.

"What are you doing?"

She put the other leg into bed and pulled the covers over herself. Then she lay down next to Two Face and wrapped her arms around him, putting her head against his chest.

She sighed. "That's much better. Isn't it, Two Face?"

He wanted to tell her that she was out of her freakin' mind. He wanted to shove her crazy ass back onto the floor. Then it hit him: a woman was coming to him willingly. Willingly putting her arms around him. A woman who didn't think he was a freak or a monster. A woman who wasn't afraid of the ugliness.

Harvey's voice went off in the back of his head. _We shouldn't be doing this. We're taking advantage of her._

**Screw that! What about us**? **What do you think Joker'll do to us if he finds out about this? Or Ivy?** Replied Two Face.

In short, both sides of Harvey Dent knew that cuddling up with Harley Quinn for the night was a really bad idea.

But she was so soft.

So warm.

And she fit so perfectly in his arms.

And now the Harvey side of Two Face's personality took over, snuggling Harley closer and breathing in the scent of her hair.

_It's funny. If I close my eyes, she could almost be Grace._

Harley's squeaky voice interrupted his thoughts. "Thanks for letting me come in, Two Face. Mistah J doesn't really like it when I do this, but a girl's gotta have some affection sometimes, you know."

_Are you kidding? The Joker could have this any time he wants and he turns her down?_

"If you were my girl, Harley, I'd hold you all the time. And I'd never hurt you."

Didn't that son of a bitch understand how lucky he was? He had a woman who truly loved him, who followed him into his madness with a smile on his face. And he treated her like garbage.

"Aw. You're really sweet, Two Face. That is, when you're not pointing a .22 in my face."

Harvey laughed- the first real laugh he'd had in a long time. "Call me Harvey, Harley, just for tonight."

"Harvey," she whispered. "That's a nice name." She pressed her face into his chest.

Harvey rested his chin on the top of her head and slowly drifted back to sleep, listening to the rain.


	3. Chapter 3

**A\N: **Thank you so much to my lovely readers and reviewers! I'm afraid this last chapter will be darker than the previous ones, but hopefully you'll all enjoy it. As always, I do not own _Batman: The Animated Series_ or any of its characters.

**Warning:** This chapter contains some language that might be demeaning to women and people with mental illnesses. It is language that I believe Two Face would use and in no way reflects my views. There's also a slight reference to animal cruelty.

_Hrrr. Hrrr._ The sound of a metal can opener woke Harvey up in the morning. He found himself alone in the bed, with sunlight streaming through the window. He yawned, stretched, and stumbled into the kitchen wearing his half-plaid, half-striped pajamas. Grabbing an early beer, he saw Harley at the kitchen table. Still clad in his Harvard t-shirt, she had her feet propped on the table and was eating pears out of a can.

"Gee, Harv, don't'cha have any _real_ food around here?" Her voice scraped against his eardrums at the same moment her fork scraped against the aluminum can. He winced.

_What did we get ourselves into?_ Two Face's voice moaned in his head.

"Sorry, Harley. I've only got what you've found in the cabinet."

"I want pancakes."

Harvey rolled his eyes. "Pancakes hardly qualify as real food, Harley."

"And that beer does?"

He glared.

"Sorry. It's just that Mistah J. and I have pancakes every morning, with big strawberry syrup smiles." She gazed dreamily off into the distance.

"Do I look like I'm a happy-smiley person in the morning?" Harvey asked with a trace of Two Face's growl in his voice.

"Ya know, it wouldn't hurt'cha to lighten up a little," replied Harley, leaning back in her chair and licking the fork. "Can I at least have some orange juice?"

"This ain't a freakin' Ritz, Quinn. You want pancakes and orange juice, you gotta go get 'em yourself," Harvey snarled, snapping into full Two Face mode.

"Well, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed."

Two Face fought the urge to push her out of her chair and stomped into the living room instead.

He turned on the t.v., and Summer Gleeson's face popped onto the screen, babbling some nonsense about Veronica Vreeland's latest boyfriend. The reporter's blather was soon drowned out by the sound of the shower, accompanied by Harley singing "You Are My Sunshine" at the top of her voice.

Two Face growled and put his hands over his ears.

_Oh my gosh. She sounds like a cat that's being skinned alive._

**Better not let Catwoman hear you make that comparison.**

_Shut up. Whatever Catwoman would do to me for that thought is two million times better than listening to that bitch screech in the shower. _

**As much as I hate to agree with you on **_**anything**_**, I think you might be right about that.**

_Thank you! You see, this is what happens when we try to be all bleeding-heart noble and shit. What were you thinking letting that broad inside? And then letting her come in our bed and get all cuddly because she's "lonely?"_

**I don't know if you've noticed, Two Face, but women aren't exactly lining up to be with us right now, much less even touch us. Come on. Who was the last woman to get close to us like that?**

_Watch it, Harvey._

**Come on, say it.**

_Harvey. . ._

**Say it.**

"It was Grace, damn it!" Two Face yelled out loud.

The sounds of song and shower ceased. Harley stuck her head out of the bathroom door.

"You okay, Harv?"

"MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS! And the name's Two Face!"

"All right. Geez, calm down. Say, you wouldn't happen to have anything around here I could wear besides, y'know, that t-shirt."

"Oh sure, Quinn. This place is just _full_ of frilly dresses, cute little miniskirts, and tight little hot pants. And don't forget the high heels! You can have your own walk-in closet for Pete's sake!"

"Ha ha. Seriously, you mind if I look for somethin'?"

"Why the heck are you asking me, anyway?"

"Because, silly, I'm gonna go get pancakes and orange juice for us."

Two Face slapped his forehead with his palm. "Fine. Whatever. Just get something and go."

About thirty minutes later, Two Face was standing over some diagrams he'd drawn for a new death trap, and Harley came out of his room wearing a dress shirt and black-and-white checkered pants. Her torn costume was wadded up in her arms.

"I'll be back in a little bit, Two Face, okay?"

He just grunted.

The moment Harley stepped out the door, Harvey's voice piped up. **You know, you were pretty rude to her.**

_It's what I do, dumbass._

**She's not some dumb henchman you can yell at. She's a very beautiful woman.**

_She and that lunatic clown are the two most annoying people on the whole damn planet!_

**Okay. She's loud. And squeaky. And she has no sense of personal boundaries. But didn't you hear? She said she was going to get pancakes for **_**us.**_

_So?_

**She cares about us. And if we're nice to her, she might stick around and keep on caring about us.**

There was a long pause. Finally, Two Face spoke up. "You know, I could use a henchwench."

A few hours later, Two Face walked into the back room of the Iceburg Lounge, carrying a suit case. He found Oswald Cobblepot sitting in a red plush chair smoking a long, thin pipe. He looked like a fat goose nesting on a golden egg. His eyes lit up with an avaricious interest when he saw Two Face.

"My dear Harvey, what a pleasure to see you," he exclaimed, bustling over to his fellow Rogue and extending a chubby hand. "What brings you to my humble abode?"

"Cut the crap, Penguin. I'm here for the Dark Flame. How much will it cost me to buy it back?"

Cobblepot squawked with indignation. "My dear fellow, I've already set up a deal with a jewelry store in Metropolis. They've offered me five thousand dollars for the Dark Flame."

"I'll give you ten grand," said Two Face, opening the suit case to reveal stacks of money. _This broad better be worth it, Harvey_, he growled mentally.

To say that Two Face was a little confused about how to be "nice" to a girl was an understatement. But a few months ago, he'd stolen an exquisite necklace known as the Dark Flame. It had red and black teardrop diamonds inlaid in a teardrop-shape pendant which hung from a golden chain. The necklace had been a very "hot" item, so Two Face had decided to fence it to Cobblepot. After much wrangling from Harvey, he'd been convinced that buying the Dark Flame back from Cobblepot and giving it to Harley would be the perfect way to begin wooing her.

Two Face could see Penguin chewing his pipe, a sign that he was deep in thought. "Well, my dear fellow," he said at last. "Normally I have a no return policy. But since you're an old friend and your offer is so _generous_, I suppose I could make an exception. You're very lucky, I might add, since I was going to sell it tomorrow. But it's still in the safe.

He waddled off.

In the meantime, both Harvey and Two Face's imaginations were quite active. Harvey pictured Harley opening the box containing the Dark Flame. He pictured the way her baby blue eyes would light up. The way her lips would open in shock and ecstasy. Two Face, on the other hand, was trying to imagine Harley's lips against his. Her warm, soft body pressed tightly against his front.

These fantasies were interrupted by Cobblepot's voice. "Here you are my friend, and remember, not a word to anyone that this transaction took place. "

Two Face thrust the suit case at Cobblepot with a grunt, snatched the Dark Flame, put it in his trench coat pocket, and stomped off.

The diamonds were heavy in his pocket as he sauntered down the street, trying for all the world to look like just another faceless Gotham pedestrian. His heart pounded against his ribs, and his whole upper body tingled with anticipation.

He walked past an electronics store, where a pile of t.v.'s were tuned to the local news. An announcement caught his ears:

"Chaos today as the Joker and Harley Quinn robbed a local grocery store."

He stopped dead. No, it couldn't be. . .

But it was. Harley was right there on the screen, wearing her torn costume and face paint. She was laughing hysterically as she punched out a customer with her boxing glove bazooka. The Joker was close by, cackling and trying to run people over with a shopping cart that was loaded with, among other things, orange juice and pancakes.

The good side of Harvey's mouth dropped open. "How-how could she be back with the Joker less than 48 hours after he beat her up and kicked her out?" he asked. "She was supposed to be ours now. She was supposed to be mine!"

In reply, Two Face lifted up their gnarled hand and pointed a finger at the image of Joker and Harley spraying the customers with laughing gas. "Face it, Harvey. We just can't give her that brand of crazy. And that's worth more to her than any rock."

They suddenly remembered that they were on a public street. People were staring at them. Two Face growled and pulled his large hat further down on his face before stalking off. He tossed the Blank into the river.

He headed back to the apartment and began packing his few possessions in a box. It was time to get a new hideout-hopefully one where he wouldn't be found by any more lovesick blonde twits. He was almost ready to go when he spotted a piece of paper on the kitchen counter.

_Dear Two-fers,_

_Thanks for letting me stay here last night. I ran into Mr. J on the way to the grocery store, and we worked things out. So I'll be okay now. And I think you will too. Just keep looking for that special person. She'll be lucky to have both of you._

_Love,_

_Harley_

Two Face grabbed the slip of paper in his disfigured hand, ready to tear it to pieces. But after a few minutes, he changed his mind and put it in the box.


End file.
